The Free Land of Equine Dues is a huge, orderly nation, remarkable for its compulsory military service, frequent executions, and devotion to social welfare. The hard-nosed, cynical population of 334 million Equines are ruled without fear or favor by a psychotic dictator, who outlaws just about everything and refers to the populace as "my little playthings."

The medium-sized, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Welfare, and Administration. The average income tax rate is 39.3%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The sizeable but inefficient Equine economy, worth 13.6 trillion Fist bumps a year, is led by the Cheese Exports industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Retail, and Door-to-door Insurance Sales. Black market activity is notable. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 40,651 Fist bumps, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.6 times as much as the poorest.

There are six more weeks of winter if a northerner sees her shadow, consumption of cat memes has skyrocketed, new pilots are regularly reminded that they are more expendable than their planes, and a third of Equines are e-certified CEOs. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Equine Dues's national animal is the Horse, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.